From the NBA to the battlefield: the story of the best basketball player in Ukraine who now defends his country against the invasion of Russia

The photo dates from August 19, 1990. And it's proof of two things.

1-That Luis Scola, one of the two best Argentine basketball players in history, was a ball thrower in the 90 World Cup held in the country, fulfilling a dream of seeing his idols from close quarters.

2-That Aleksandr Volkov was one of the figures of the USSR who played the final against Vlade Divac's Yugoslavia. He is No. 11 who raises his arms, between Divac and Zarko Pajpalj, while he sees that the ball is lost by the final line. The same as Luifa, sitting, with her feet crossed, dressed in blue jogging.

This forward or pivot wing of 2m09 was born in 1964 in Omsk, south of Siberia, but since childhood he lived in Ukraine, today his land razed that he is trying to defend, with soldiers who were born for that and others, like him and many other athletes, who have taken up arms and are on the front lines. In this situation, they say that Volkov is, from a photo that circulated of him with his rifle, in a Ukrainian army vehicle, at the age of 57.

Aleksandr was formed by the famous coach Boris Vdovichenko at the Kiev Stroitel, a team that was champion of the USSR in 1989, then called in three other ways and disappeared in 2018 due to economic debts. Volkov made his professional debut in 1981, at the age of 17, and stood out, in his club, first, and then among the elite of talented young people of Europe. He surprised in 1986, at 22, when Atlanta Hawks chose him in the NBA draft, ranked 134 in the sixth round. These were times when, very little by little, the best league in the world began to look abroad, especially to Europe. In fact, two years later, the Hawks themselves would choose Jorge González (the 2m29 Giant who played in our National League) and the 76ers, to Hernán Montenegro. Selecting foreign figures was a way to keep their rights, in case in the future they offered him a contract, something not simple, because of the prejudices that existed with regard to the level of players outside the United States.

With Volkov, unlike the two Argentines, that would happen, as early as 1989, when the player became a star of his national team and all of Europe. In 1986, Aleksandr moved to CSKA Moscow, the Red Army team, not so much because of sporting ambitions, but because of “strictly military issues”, as he himself explained without giving any details. Two seasons he played in today's most important Russian team and was part of the legendary Soviet team that conquered Europe and the world of basketball in those years. That USSR was made up of a group of players from very different backgrounds: Baltics (Marciulionis, Kurtinaitis, Sabonis and Homicius), Latvians (Valters), Ukrainians (Volkov), Russians (Tachenko, Tarakanov) and even Uzbeks (Tikhonenko)... Together on the court and outside, with some “concealable” differences, they were kings of Europe (1985), Olympic champions (1988) and twice world runners-up (1986 and 1990). A real team in which Volkov was a pivot wing-forward who did everything: he could play front and back to the rim, he could score and defend, he had a shot, vision of the game and rebounding ability. A connector between strong and determined perimeters (Marciulionis, Kurtinaitis, Valters and Homicius) and giants near the hoop, not without talent, such as Sabonis.

In 1989, before arriving in our country for the World Cup whose final would be defined at Luna Park - with Scola as a ballboy, through contacts with his uncle, Raúl Becerra -, Volkov received the long-awaited NBA offer and became, together with Lithuanian Marciulonis, the first Soviets to play in the United States, in the best competition in the world. Luckily, the Cold War came to an end sooner in sport than in politics and both were able to break that barrier that was very difficult for any foreigner and even more so if they came from the Soviet Union. “Now it's easier to go there... I think if you look at the number of players there are and those that were before, you realize. Before you had to be the best in your country, one of the best in Europe and then you could have a chance. Now any player can go there and try their luck. In my time, more for us, it was something else”, he compared, already retired, when asked about both eras.

In those years, Mike Fratello was the coach of the Hawks, who decades later would be led by Volkov himself to lead the Ukrainian national team. Aleksandr came to a great team that, with Dominique Wilkins, Moses Malone, Doc Rivers and Reggie Theus, came from winning 52 of 82 games and reaching the playoffs. The following season, 89/90, was no longer as good (41-41 record without playoffs), with Volkov playing 72 of the 82 games, albeit without as much participation (13 minutes). He averaged 5 points and 1.7 rebound. In the next, 90/91, the franchise improved somewhat (43-39 reaching the first round of the postseason) although with the Ukrainian without playing because of an injury. The best, at the individual level, was shown in 91/92, averaging 20 minutes and contributing 8.7 points, 3.4 recoveries and 3.2 assists, although with the team in the middle of the table (38-44, without playoffs).

His contract ended and, after playing the 1992 Olympic Games, being the great figure of the Unified Team who was in Barcelona after the dissolution of the USSR, he returned to Europe. He first played for Italian Reggio Calabria, with 19.3 points and an average of 8 rebounds. He then played in the two major Greek teams, Panathinaikos and Olympiacos, and retired in 1995 after falling in the European Cup final to Real Madrid. These were years of many injuries and physical problems, especially in the back, that almost left him in a wheelchair. But he recovered, at least to have a brief reappearance in the BC Kiev that he founded himself. It was a testimonial thing. He said goodbye, definitely, in 2002.

Already retired, he held managerial positions. He was, first, Minister of Sports of Ukraine, between 1999 and 2000. And since June 2007 he was in charge of the Ukrainian Basketball Federation. Of course, history marked her on the court. In 1991, FIBA chose him as one of the 50 best players in history and, although there were no prizes, in his country, Ukraine, no one doubts that he is the best basketball player in history. Now, in addition, he won heaven by encouraging himself to take a gun and go to the front lines, always following his conviction to make history in life. As happened with his national team, in the NBA and now in this war against Russia. “My favorite words, since my youth, are those of Julius Caesar, the Roman emperor: '23 years and nothing has been done for immortality. '” Volkov has lived trying to make a mark.

KEEP READING: